Book Description

Contemporary in perspective, this classic volume offers a practical, non-theoretical, approach to the all aspects of purchasing for the food service industry -- and presents more information on nutrition than any other similar book available. Features a combination of how to purchase plus the factors needed to purchase.Provides the detail necessary to get what is desired in the various foods and services that are purchased. Provides unique, detailed coverage of the definition of qualities and other factors important in the purchase of food and related products. Explains of why patrons need to be considered. Contains an exceptionally complete review of how the computer is used in purchasing. Includes cases studies.For those responsible for managing quantity food purchasing in the food service industry. ... Read more

Book Description

Fully updated to keep pace with a rapidly changing technological environment

The swift-moving technology revolution continues to transform the practices and procedures involved in purchasing for the hospitality industry, even as essential principles remain unchanged. Now, the cornerstone volume that set the standard for how hospitality purchasing is taught at universities, colleges, and culinary schools addresses the latest technological tools used in the industry today.

As always, Purchasing: Selection and Procurement for the Hospitality Industry, Sixth Edition retains the exceptional coverage that has made it the classic in its field, with in-depth attention to ordering procedures, distribution systems, supplier channels, price and payment, storage and security, and specifications for food, furniture, fixtures, and equipment. Chapters on produce, dairy, eggs, poultry, fish, meat, beverages, and other products are fully updated with the latest standards and trends.

Purchasing is important reading for students in hospitality, restaurant management, and culinary arts programs. This easy-to-use guide is also an excellent resource for professionals in food service and lodging operations who conduct training courses on purchasing goods and hospitality services. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Good information, bad organization
I had to use this book as a text for a purchasing course I took and was frustrated to no end by its lack of organization.The different sections often repeat and even contradict themselves, although this improves substantially when you get to the chapters in the second half of the book on specific categories of items to be purchased.Each chapter is followed by a list of 30-40 "important words and concepts," most of which aren't defined or explained in the chapter but just mentioned in passing.Some of them aren't even mentioned in the chapter, and many of them appear on two or three different lists.The index is so limited as to be next to useless, and there is no glossary.I found myself continuously referring to other books and internet resources to get the information I needed, not because it wasn't in the book, but because I couldn't *find* it.

That said, the content of the book is thorough and well thought-out.Though I wouldn't recommend it as a textbook or desk reference, reading through it would give a novice buyer a good grounding in the principles of purchasing.

Awesome Book!!
This text is very easy to use.It covers just about every aspect of purchasing in the hospitality industry, and makes it simple to find what you're looking for.The information is very straight-forward, and it's written in plain english for anyone to understand.

Good book!!!
This book is very informative and well-organized.It's very easy to find what you're looking for...and it's got it all when it comes to information that pertains to purchasing for the industry.Very up-to-date...I especially liked the "Technology Applications for Purchasing" chapter.

A Comprehensive Understanding to Purchasing in the Hospitali
This textbook succinctly outlines and dicusses purchasing processes in the hospitality industry.It is therefore essential for any nonpurchasing agent who wants a comprehensive view of the purchasing function and activities to understand the management of a successful operation.The book has a lot of useful hands-on information and would be valuable to any person who will be assuming any purchasing related activities in the hospitality industry. As one who has studied hospitality management and worked in the industry, the detailed explanations are very precise and correct and very instructive.The book is recommended for nonpurchasing agents, but I recommend it for anyone who wants to understand one of managements' biggest headaches: purchasing. ... Read more

Book Description

Equipment leasing is one of the most complex aspects of business finance in existence, involving sophisticated concepts often understoodonly by experts. Consequently, business executives and purchasing professionals often fail to maximize their leverage in signing leases, or opt instead topurchase equipment outright at staggering costs.

Combining the author's Handbook of Equipment Leasing with the tools from his Complete Book of Equipment Leasing Agreements, Forms,Worksheets, and Checklists, this comprehensive volume provides the legal, financial, and business background essential for evaluating, negotiating, anddocumenting successful equipment lease transactions. This invaluable resource for lessors and lessees answers questions like:

* How does the leasing marketplace really work? * What is the best way for a company to solicit lease bids? * What economic and tax risks does a lessor face? * When is leasing a poor choice?

The book also addresses crucial issues like profit strategies, forming and running a leasing company, and the leasing of equipment in the growinginternational market. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The Complete Equipment-Leasing Handbook
Good book but came with a defective forms CD.I was told by the American Management Association that I need to run the CD on win 95 to open the files? The book was published in 2002!

AMACOM Publishes Defective Books
I've ordered this book 3 times. Each time the book, which includes a CD-ROM in the back for the ease of duplicating the many forms inside, came with a defective disk. AMACOM rebuffed, rather rudely in fact, my request for a replacement disk. They were also contacted by ... AMACOM refused their request to fix their defective CDs as well. At this point, I'm returning the book.

This is unfortunate because the book is well written, but I have no plans to purchase anything published by AMACOM again. ... Read more

Book Description

The Harvard Business Review Paperback Series brings managers and professionals the fundamental information they need to stay competitive in a fast-moving world. Gathered in a highly accessible format are the leading minds and landmark ideas that have established the Harvard Business Review as required reading for forward-thinking businesspeople worldwide.

As technology and globalization have disrupted traditional operations along the supply chain, the relationship between suppliers, customers, and competitors has changed dramatically. Examining this issue from several strategic perspectives, Harvard Business Review on Managing the Value Chain outlines key ideas and provides guidance for incorporating shifts in the value chain into your strategic outlook. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Typical professor-speak BS
I have a degree in Supply Chain Mgmt and I now work as a Supply Chain Consultant for a company in Atlanta. I picked up this book for useful tips and strategy and I was dissapointed with its contents. Its full of professor-speak BS, all the buzzwords and hip MBA slogans, but its short on anything that's practical. I would have enjoyed this book if were still a wet-behind-the-ears undergrad, real world experience makes cute catchprases and lofty anecdotes irrelevant.

Compilation of HBR Articles
Excellent stuff... its just that I didn't realize that it was a compliation of HBR articles (which I already owned).
- Modularity
- Li & Fung Hong Kong
- Chrysler Keiretsu
- Trust in Retail
- The Right Supply Chain
- Make your dealers your partners
- Value chain constellation
- Lean Production

top notch
Once again, HBR has produced an accessible book that highlights the forefront of ideas of the value chain. The best part of books in this series is that you don't have to commit to reading the whole book at one time. You can pick up the book when you have time and read a whole case and feel like you are still able to add to you strategy knowledge.

Harvard Business Review on Managing the Value Chain
Excellent cases.If you are an operations professional, you'll study, learn and live by whats discussed here. There are a couple of examples that seem dated here, but that is to get the fundamentals right and I dont complain! I am a believer in HBR and this one again goes on to prove why. ... Read more

Book Description

The process known as Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment (CPFR) is supply chain management taken to the extreme. The first book to document this cutting-edge technique that's been adapted by companies like Wal-Mart, Pillsbury, and Procter and Gamble, Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment collects case studies and contributions by the foremost experts in the field to give readers an insightful introduction to this revolutionary new supply chain method.

The CPFR technique involves supply chain members sharing information in real time over the Internet, enhancing the collaborative dialogue between retailers and vendors. The process allows long- and short-term planning to happen instantaneously, as information is shared regarding forecasts, shipping and production, point-of-sale data, and order generation. Based on groundbreaking research done at Harvard Business School, this book shows anyone involved in long-term strategic planning how CPFR can be implemented -- quickly, successfully, and in almost any setting. ... Read more

Book Description

If you read one book about managing your supply chain, read this book.There has been a tremendous amount of energy focused on improving efficiencies within a business organization.The results have been, at best, mixed.Streamlined: Building and Managing the Lean Supply Chain changes everything.This insightful and comprehensive book covers the activities of all businesses involved in the flow of products, services, finances, and information from the initial suppliers to the ultimate users.Presented using 14 simple, yet powerful, principles for building and managing the lean supply chain, Streamlined develops the thought process that managers need to lead their enterprises into the twenty-first century.It presents specific steps and instructions to help the manager deal with the complexities of running the business from a logistics and operations perspective. The book stresses systems thinking.It uniquely integrates two management philosophies: the theory of constraints and lean thinking, illustrating how they complement and reinforce each other to create the smooth flow of goods and services through the supply chain.Srinivasan provides candid discussions of managers tasks and responsibilities and how they may be best accomplished by applying these conceptual tools.The concepts in this book can be applied to any organization, regardless of the industry one works in. Veteran managers will gain a new perspective as they view the supply chain from a holistic approach. The 14 principles in the book are presented with common-sense explanations. Less experienced managers will benefit from the case studies that provide living examples of how each of the 14 principles has been applied successfully in practice. The summaries and conclusions throughout the book effectively reinforce the content in each chapter. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Not really for beginners at all
The book is laid out in the typical "Idiot's Guide" fasion, with big fonts, lots of bullets and often simplistic writing style. I appreciate that...that's what you want when you pick up an idiot's guide.

The title would imply that this is a book for the first time buyer of a business, or the first time seller. However, A WHOLE LOT OF SPACE is dedicated to the current business owner looking to expand by buying a new business to add to their holdings. It even touches on huge corporations buying businesses. I told myself I would skip over those parts, as I do not currently own a business. I ended up skipping darn near half the book.

I'm not saying its a terrible book. It's easy to follow. But it is NOT REALLY FOR IDIOT'S. Afterall, if you're successful enough in your business to be considering buying another business, would you really want or need a book for "idiots?"

I've seen better
Even though this is for "idiots" it was still not as idiot-proof as I was hoping. It seems more geared for buying/acquiring/merging larger sized companies. I was really looking for Small Business. I purchased another book "Business Buyer's Kit" which was much easier to follow and more comprehensive.

Business Buying
I was researching my local market to buy a business after 20 years in the corporate rat race. This book by Ed Paulson was invaluable in guiding me throw the somewhat complicated transactions that must occur to buy a business. Highly recommend. Thanks Ed.... ... Read more

Book Description

Sybex, the leader in certification, is offering C.P.M. (Certified Purchasing Manager) candidates a unique and economical resource: comprehensive coverage of all four certification exams in one book, at a very low price. Sponsored by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), the C.P.M. (Certified Purchasing Manager) Certification is a globally recognized designation that validates the knowledge and skills required of today's purchasing professionals. The companion CD includes an advanced test engine with a bonus exam, electronic flash cards for PC and Palm devices, and the entire book in PDF. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The Purchasing Machine, by supply-management professionals Dave Nelson, Patricia E. Moody, and Jonathan Stegner, presents a strong argument for the growing importance of this highly specialized facet of the manufacturing process--incorporating "purchasing, money and material flows, ownership of acquisition and sourcing strategies, and even intellectual property movement and control"--along with a series of related measures that could carry companies to the top in years ahead. It also focuses on the leadership skills necessary to make them a reality. The authors admit that their best-practice companies (American Express, Flextronics, Whirlpool, Harley-Davidson, IBM, John Deere, Honda of America, Sun Microsystems, SmithKline Beecham, and DaimlerChrysler) aren't perfect in all areas, as evidenced by the recent tribulations of the latter automaker. But each has learned to excel in a particular area, such as customer relations or systems innovations, and the authors describe them and ways their examples might help others cut costs and turn resultant savings into "lower consumer prices, exciting products, or fatter shareholder returns." Nelson, Moody, and Stegner identify 20 of these best practices (such as Training, Supplier Information Sharing, and Loaned Executives), and show how "the discipline of acquiring and moving material" can be turned to strategic advantage. --Howard Rothman ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Very Average
As a purchasing professional, I turned to this book to gain insight to new or advanced purchasing practices that might help me in my work and I was very enthusiastic about the book when I began reading it. Instead of new knowledge, I found repetitive stories about the mass production environments in the automotive and related industries. Although some new thoughts or ideas were presented, I did not feel as if this book taught me anything novel or cutting edge. It is simply a repeat of purchasing concepts that can be found in many other operations or supply chain books flavored with managerial buzz words and the self-glorifying personal success stories of the authors and the companies they work for. If you work in a job shop environment or for a small to medium size business, this book is virtually useless. If you are in a huge mass production environment with a large budget, it might be of some value, but my guess is that you would already be familiar with the concepts presented.

Lots of words, little content
Ifyou are looking for a "how to" book, look somewhere else. This book appears to have only general rules of the thumbs , wrapped in lots of manager lingo (people resource allocation, globalization, etc.) Overal very disapointing. The only positive side are the occasional industry examples, but there are not enough of them to make this book a good buy.

And where is the beef?
Based on an extensive research project this book promises a lot but delivers nothing. The first thing that you have to recognize is that there is hardly any structure at all. Repitions abound without adding any value. The style of writing is close to unbearable - they could have put the contents into a fourth of the pages. The cases are sketchy at best; they claim to offer best practices but are nothing new. The book tries to look into the future and puts forward a wildly speculative view of what the authors think lies ahead; again they do not offer a vision but describe the status quo in future tense. For people who like real satire I recommend Moody's Harley Davidson poem! Summary: Only recommended for those who need to own every book on the subject...

Packed With Knowledge!
One of this book's mantras is that purchasing is a lot more important these days than in decades past. The authors, Dave Nelson, Patricia Moody and Jonathon Stegner, have spent decades in the field of purchasing. Their principal argument is that now that most companies outsource their equipment and even their parts (for example, very few Dell parts are made in-house), purchasing has become not only more important, but a potential source of incredible savings. The dozen companies profiled in this book - which is meant to detail the best practices in purchasing worldwide - have realized millions of dollars in savings simply by optimizing supply-chain management. The authors emphasize that this isn't an individual task. Change in purchasing management requires an internal team and management support. We [...] recommend this book not only to purchasing managers, but to all corporate executives, any of whom will glean some invaluable pointers about how to save money in day-to-day operations.

Purchasing Machine : How the Top 10 Companies Use Best Pract
I am fortunate in that I received a copy of this book for review prior to the publication and can only suggest that if you read a few business books this year read this one. You will not only be able to relate to several of the best practices but you will be able to apply one or more of them in your organization and make a positive bottom line impact. ... Read more

Book Description

Collaborative manufacturing is an interactive process with great potential, but without the direct input of the plant floor systems information, a significant piece of the management process is not available for consideration. Collaborative Manufacturing provides guidance and examples of how and why real-time events within the plant floor management infrastructure should be an integral on-line systems link within the supply chain process. The text presents an overview of the resources planning systems, the design and management of plant data systems, including manufacturing execution systems and methods for calculating ROI when applying collaborative techniques. This professional how-to-guide will help end users understand the significant benefits of this technology and aids them in system design and implementation. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Collaborative Manufacturing
I have been searching for a description of manufacturing collaboration to understand the concepts. This book has given me a very definitive understanding of a range of possibilities and shows how various industries are applying collaboration ideas. The book is well researched and provides excellent reference information for anyone desiring to understand the underpinnings of collaboration in its various forms.

Path Forward to Business Improvement
The author has done a marvelous job in defining the Collaborative Manufacturing environment, describing the best practices of what companies are doing today, and "painting the picture" of what Collaborative Manufacturing may be in the future. This is a must read book for those who are looking for practical methods to improve the overall customer order fulfillment process.

solid introduction to manufacturing issues
Collaborative Manufacturing is a solid over view of the important issues facing today's manufactures. The book covers the entire manufacturing spectrum, batch, continuous, discrete, as well as real world examples in the automotive, life sciences, electronics and process industry. It also provides definitions and context for the various acronyms used in the different industry segments. This book should be required reading for anyone wishing to work for or sell to manufacturing companies.

We are in the process of starting a small tools company. We believe a collaborative demand activated manufacturing strategy is the best path to success. We believe the book will be of great assistance in helping build a company that takes advantage of technology and collaborative strategies. ... Read more

Download Description

In the e-world it is the B2B marketplace. And in the B2B marketplace, the hottest thing--and the thing most likely to turn companies a profit--is e-procurement. This book provides the platform for establishing a company's eprocurement strategy and the nec ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Nice Price, Text Rich, Poor Diagrams, Great Classifications!
This book can be divided into 3 main parts. The first 4 chapters essentially put forward the case for e-procurement with an opening chapter containing some 33 references alone!

The intermediate section ranges from main players on the market, the software landscape & architecture, models, classification schemes and government/military tendering processes. If this chunk don't win you over then I don't know what will.

Finally, the last 4 chapters deal with issues that an intrepid implementer of an e-procurement initiative should consider. Guiding principles, structures & phases, elements to productive executive workshops and the all important change management issues. Dale places great importance on change management even going so far as to quote Mark Twain. This section is quite admonitory but the author is a management consultant by trade so I guess it's quite logical for him to advise us on issues that we should be considering before getting our hands dirty. Perhaps it will earn him some business ;-)

One thing I noticed about this author is that he is very competent at is finding synonyms. For example "maverick purchasing" can also be termed "off-contract buying" or even "rogue procurement". All of which help the reader to become more fluent in the lingua france of B2B electronic trade and keeps the narrative fresh and interesting. Early on he broadly classifies goods into white-collar ORM and blue-collar MRO introducing these colorful terms in large bold print - a common characteristic of this book.

Chapter 5: "The E-Procurement Software Landscape" requires more work IMHO. The sheer fact that I found myself tabulating the main players like Commerce One & Ariba, the solution/s they offered (whether enterprise or network based), it's name and their strategic partners would tend to indicate that the author should have done so. The main diagram provided is a pie-graph showing macroscopic market detail but it just too encompassing. Don't get me wrong - the information is provided (in text format) but it's all over the shop (no pun intended). A table would have gone down well.
Chapter 6: "The Architecture of Web-Based Procurement" is fantastic. It should have come earlier. Dale breaks down the environment broadly into "one-to-many" and "many-to-many" type approaches. Another class he introduces is the "buy-side", "sell-side" and "independent portal" type offerings. He further sub-classifies the buy-sponsored focus into 'desktop' (e.g. Concur Procurement) and 'central' type offerings. He provides us with a powerful classification scheme here but I felt he could of tied examples of each type closer to said classes. One other thing that I found surprising was the fact that he only mentions the 3 main pricing models in passing (subscription fee, transaction charge & percentage of exchange fee). I though he would of elaborated on this like he did with the mentioning of vertical e-markets like the Covisint alliance (forged by the "market creators" Ford, General Motors, Daimler-Chrysler and Renault-Nissan) and the corresponding horizontal e-market offering: OrderZone.com/ (which comes compliments of W. W. Grainger). Once again the information is provided all right but I felt that a suitable table could have easily consolidated the stuff at chapter end.
Chapter 8: "Government and E-Procurement" is riveting and current. If you're in favor of lowering the cost of government (raise hands) this exploration should give you warm, tingly feelings all over. Firstly, he introduces us to how government traditionally puts out tenders, then comes the e-procurement advantage bit and finally he rounds of with the one-and-only example of Singapore's "GeBiz" portal. This is a common technique that Dale employs of teaching us about the old bad way, then introducing us to the new good way and finally topping off with a great example. Also covered at the end is military procurement, which in current times is quite poignant. Need I say any more?
Finally, concerning predictions, Dale is not afraid to stick his neck out and make a few non-obvious ones. He sees no particular model becoming *the* dominant one but rather continued coexistence of "...the buyer-sponsored enterprise model and the third-party sponsored exchange model..." and foresees "...dramatic changes in terms of focus and consolidation..." to boot. He upholds Gartner Group's forecast that each vertical will only be able to support a max of 3 players and hence foresees "consolidation of the vertical e-marketplaces" which "...has already begun." Auctions in said verticals most evolve "...toward fuller functionality or extinction." The broad distinction between direct and indirect goods will remain but "...continuing to blur" Government can help "set standards" (like XML which he praises because it "...will greatly help intersystem connectivity.") and the whole e-government thing will "...soon see significant growth." In general though, survivors "...will need to offer supply chain management expertise as opposed to simple purchasing leverage."

To summarize therefore what you will procure is 196 pages spread over 14 chapters with an average of 5 citations per chapter. 10 diagrams, 8 short case studies and about 5 graphs. Common industry terms are introduced and defined in large bold print, TLAs are kept to a minimum and the cover has some pretty trees on it!

This book is very suitable for people who do not come from a business background - like me for example ;-) After reading this hardback I certainly increased my business vocabulary and was able to "talk the talk" with the best of them. I obtained extremely useful classification schemes that greatly helped me with business model deconstruction & system analysis and became familiar with the main players on the market at the same time.

Personally I would of loved to see more on auctions and their variations, perhaps including some game theory - but perhaps that's just wishful thinking!

Quote of the book though, definitely has to go to the chap deep inside an e-procurement project who shrewdly observed: "I like the supplier savings here, but I don't plan to be one of the transactional savings."

Blue collar MRO anyone? :-)

Good Book On Fundamentals
eProcurement is an excellent book for the basic fundamentals of of eprocurement (eprocurement 101). We are the authors of a more advanced version for purchasing professionals already using some form of epurchasing. Our book is titled ePurchasingPlus and has input from over 30 experts and practitioners from US, UK & Canada that use ePurchasingPlus products and concepts. We recommend both books for the purchasing professional to find about the future of our profession.

Excellent Book
Mr. Neef did an excellent job with this book. It is not a down and dirty technical book that describes the inner workings of an e-procurement system. Then again, I think that is why I like it so much. After reading this book I feel I know the business behind e-procurement and that is THE most important issue when it comes to any system.

As a result of reading this book I have a better understanding of what e-procurement is all about. I also feel I have gained an appreciation for the different types of systems as well as where the entire e-procurement market is headed. He discussed the importance of things such as Decision Support and Business Intelligence. He supported most, if not all, of his points with solid research.

I am an systems engineer and not a business person. I got a lot out of this book. I would recommend it to both members technical groups as well as business people. The technical person will gain an appreciation for the business aspects of e-procurement. While the manager/business person will be given good direction and insights into e-procurement. I would imagine this to be of benefit to anyone whose organization is contemplating e-procurement or just some one generally interested in the area. This is even a good read for the manager who is not currently involved with e-procurement. It may show you how much you DO need it.

KUDOS to Dale Neef.

The best e-procurement book in the market!!
I am a professional in the e-business thought leadership arena, and have searched high and low for a solid book on e-procurement. Neef's book has it all!!

It is well orginized, and backed up with solid data and research. Whether your an e-business professional or an executive looking to understand what B2B commerce and e-procurement can mean to your business, buy this book. ... Read more

Book Description

The purchasing function is in the middle of unprecedented change. The transformation is being driven by globalization in consumer andsupplier markets, as well as by rapid technological advances that facilitate procurement on any scale.

The Sourcing Solution offers a clear overview of the new tools of sourcing success, including e-commerce and Internet strategies, supply-chainmanagement technology, inventory auction sites, strategic sourcing initiatives, offshore and international sourcing, and much more. Author LarryPaquette brings his considerable experience to this engaging and accessible guide, designed to give readers practical ideas for use in their own organizationsand throughout their careers.

The Sourcing Solution is a timely resource for professionals at all levels, including:

* Newly promoted buyers who will use it as a basic introduction to purchasing, filled with great ideas for how to do the job better * Managers whose growth and new responsibilities require understanding of broader issues * Executives who need to identify shortfalls in current sourcing initiatives, set new procurement goals, and develop strategies and metrics for ensuring ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Insightful!
Purchasing is a critically important business function, although it lacks the glamour and excitement of, say, finance or sales. In the past, purchasing employees have often been little more than glorified clerks mired in price comparisons. Sometimes, their responsibilities included accompanying vendors to ballgames and such, activities that helped keep the purchasing pro's mind off the fact that not many CEOs seemed to come up through the purchasing department. That may already be changing. Indeed, purchasing is now a career hot spot. Several trends - such as corporate demands for cost cutting and outsourcing, new electronic markets and auctions, globalization of customers and vendors, sharper supply-chain logistics technology, and the movement to create partnerships with suppliers - make purchasing substantially more important than ever before. Author Larry Paquette offers a short, lucid, quite readable summary of the essentials of purchasing in that light. We find it an excellent, comprehensive and useful overview of sourcing.

A Guidepost for Success
In an age of micro business specialization, The Sourcing Solution provides a refreshingly broad approach to sourcing in the global economy. Where most business books on the shelf today delve deeply into a specific topic or bore the reader to tears with exploring the remotest corners of a topic, this book provides a road map to overall sourcing success.

As Paquette points out, this book provides an overview approach to sourcing, and lists and briefly covers the steps required to improve the probability of attaining success. For the new buyer, this is a checklist of learning and experience required. For the manager of a company looking to install a sourcing process, The Sourcing Solution identifies areas to be concerned with. As the reader goes through the text, they are free to create a sylibus of topics they feel they need to explore further.

This book is not intended to be the "Be all, final sourcing reference" when it comes to sourcing. Instead, it is a well written guide to sourcing of the future. I found it to be an entertaining read that presents the material in an informative, yet interesting manner.

Good for general managers, not for professional purchasers
As a procurement consultant I can agree on most issues Paquette raises in his book. Despite valuable details and a good overview, however, I would not recommend this book for professional purchasers, even though this is the target group Paquette addresses.

Why? The book is a little bit superficial in nature, just scraping issues without providing you with the tools you need to actually solve problems. As an example, Paquette talks about a Japanese technique called SMED. In the single page dedicated to the issue, you do not really learn what it is. The only advantage of being mentioned is that you may feel inspired to find out if it fits your company and how to implement it. Paquette includes some literature links, unfortunately without regularely quoting them in the text. So you have to start an own research or ask someone to do so for you.

This leads me to my final conclusion: In my opinion, professional purchasers may find the book too little revealing. Still, it is a good book, however for a different audience: The typical reader would be the head of a commercial department, who has also taken over the responsability for a purchasing sub-department and needs to have some introductory insights to understand the state and the potential for his purchasing unit.

Insightful!
Purchasing is a critically important business function, although it lacks the glamour and excitement of, say, finance or sales. In the past, purchasing employees have often been little more than glorified clerks mired in price comparisons. Sometimes, their responsibilities included accompanying vendors to ballgames and such, activities that helped keep the purchasing pro's mind off the fact that not many CEOs seemed to come up through the purchasing department. That may already be changing. Indeed, purchasing is now a career hot spot. Several trends - such as corporate demands for cost cutting and outsourcing, new electronic markets and auctions, globalization of customers and vendors, sharper supply-chain logistics technology, and the movement to create partnerships with suppliers - make purchasing substantially more important than ever before. Author Larry Paquette offers a short, lucid, quite readable summary of the essentials of purchasing in that light. We find it an excellent, comprehensive and useful overview of sourcing.

Excellent, Practical and Easy To Read
Larry Paquette has crafted what might well become the essential handbook of best sourcing practices. This is an extremely well-written, easy-to-understand and timely guide. And though it's aimed at the purchasing/sourcing professional, anyone will find useful information on issues such as negotiating skills, ethical business practices and creating solid business relationships. Two rather extensive Reference and Suggested Reading lists are included.

Paquette's straighforward and extremely personable writing style raises the bar for business books. He takes the reader through the step-by-step process of how to negotiate the best solution possible while expertly avoiding the pitfalls that undermine future business relationships, both without and within one's organization. The book is full of practical examples, purchasing history, and lessons from the author's personal experience. The material is easy for the new purchasing/sourcing professional to grasp, yet it also offers valuable insight for the experienced business person, manager, and business owner.

However, it's the moral fiber of the book, Paquette's refreshing reinforcement that ethical behavior is still the best business practice, that brings us back to square one. Or, in the author's own words, "Anyone can question my abilities. What I never want anyone to question, is my integrity and honesty."

White collar, blue collar, or no collar at all, every working person can benefit from the wisdom and practical guidance found in The Sourcing Solution. ... Read more

Book Description

Outsourcing has unparalleled power to generate value and wealth for those who learn to apply its principles effectively. Yet, the pitfalls are many and deep for those who outsource without first taking the time to understand its underlying principles. Shrouded in mystery, outsourcing has been a source of confusion and frustration for many executives. Now for the first time, the principles of outsourcing have been clearly explained and illustrated in Turning Lead into Gold. Peter Bendor-Samuel, a world-renowned outsourcing authority, shares his insights on how and why outsourcing works, and how it can work for your organization. He presents documented evidence of success with examples from the real-life experience of major corporations, including EDS, IBM, AT&T, British Petroleum, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, J.P. Morgan & Co., Andersen Consulting, and JCPenney, among others. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Straight-forward and Candid
Peter Bendor-Samuel has a gift for articulating the essence of a business process that all too often is misunderstood. When the process is misunderstood a potential extended enterprise instead becomes a tangled mess, lacking dicipline and focus. In his book, Bendor-Samuel reveals in laymen's terms the fundamental principles that will make for a successful relationship. Turning Lead into Gold is Bendor-Samuel at his best. The author never loses sight of the fundamentals (market-principles, well defined contracts and diciplined management) and provides effective metaphors for describing tactics that often undermine these principles. There are many practitioners in the industry who understand and demonstrate the keys to outsourcing excellence, but few who commmunicate them as elegantly. Whether you are considering outsourcing or are simply staying abreast of business trends, this book will serve as a worthwhile read.

Eye-opening, educational and entertaining
As the founder of probably the smallest corporation in America, (Meltdown International Inc.), I don't have the resources, time or knowledge to do everything well. The only way companies of any size can survive and thrive in today's changing business world is to outsource acitivities that don't pay the light bill or distinguish themselves in the global marketplace.

But how do you do this? Giving away important processes like finance and accounting to an outsourcing provider is scary. This book gave me the courage and the confidence to outsource. It told me what to do, what NOT to do, and what to watch out for. It gave me clear guidelines on pricing going into a relationship and how to police performance during the life of the contract. It also gave me a blueprint for handling disputes because they do come up.

I now outsource my finance and accounting to a provider 10 minutes from my office. (I want face to face chats about my money!)I also outsource my Web development and hosting to a company in the Philippines that does terrific work at a remarkably reasonable rate. I would never have even considered an offshore supplier if I hadn't read this book. It helped me understand the whole planet is now a source of suppliers.

The author's premise is that companies today have no option but to outsource. I have found in my own experience that is certainly true. I had no idea of how to go about it. If in doubt, read! This book was the perfect primer for a newcomer like me.

A Great Pre-marital Manual for Would-be Outsourcing Allies!
Turning Lead into Gold is a valuable piece of work for buyers as well as sellers of outsourcing. It clearly presents how this modern form of business alchemy turns operations that drain resources from companies into generators of value.

The hard statistics are accompanied by easy to understand case studies and explanations. I highly recommend it as a 'must read" for both parties to an outsourcing relationship as "pre-marital" counseling manual that will promote more successful and profitable alliances.

Thank you Peter Bendor-Samuel.

Turning Lead Into Gold: The Demystification of Outsourcing
Throughout all business media, everyone is talking about usingoutsourcing to enable companies to be competitive in today'smarketplace. But this is the only book that really explains exactlyhow to do it successfully. Whether your company is large or smalllike ours, you will benefit greatly by reading this book by PeterBendor-Samuel. He makes something with underlying complexities becomesimple to understand. He includes case studies and charts toillustrate his points. I have heard Mr. Bendor-Samuel speak atconferences, and I regularly visit his .... web site for informationabout outsourcing. But this book is the ultimate guide. He starts withinformation about whether or not outsourcing is the right strategy fora company, then he explains how to structure the relationship, thecontractual documents, how to know whether the price is right. Fromreading this book, I now know the hazardous areas to avoid and alsohow to successfully maintain an ongoing relationship with asupplier. This book will help me make very important businessdecisions, and I probably would have made the wrong decisions if I hadnot read it. END ... Read more

Book Description

Over the past few years purchasing and supply management has been increasingly accepted as a key area for the improvement of a companys competitive advantage. Purchasing and Supply Chain Management introduces the reader to the key principles underlying purchasing and supply management. It provides them with an in-depth discussion of purchasing and supply issues both from a strategic and managerial perspective. Views on purchasing issues are, when possible, illustrated with research results from national and international specialist literature. This new edition includes new material on the value of the Internet for purchasing market research, developing new leveraged purchasing strategies and portfolio management, how to get better results from suppliers, developing cost models and procurement and the EC-Directives. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is absolutely necessary for anyone even thinking about buying a new home.The authors are new home experts and are telling all of the builder's secrets in this one-of-kind guide.The reader of this book will learn Insider information that will allow him to negotiate the lowest possible price for a new home.The book also gives complete instructions on how to find a good builder and guarantee a quality built new home. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

"New-Home Buying Bible"
This is a must have book if you are buying a new home! I read this book in two days and loved every minute. It tells you everything you need to know to get the home of your dreams built correctly. I highly recommend you read this book and have anyone else who wants to buy a new home read it too!! Two thumbs way UP!!

GREAT BOOK
This is a great book for the average Joe, easy to read and understand. I read it in one weekend and was truly enlightened. This is a must have for the informed new home buyer. ... Read more

Book Description

Boasting three new chapters, the Seventh Edition offers readers all the latest developments in retail buying to reflect the current market.Using a practical approach that emphasizes the major aspects of retail buying, this book provides the fundamental information new buyers need to accurately forecast and fulfill their customers' merchandise requirements. With a host of end-of-chapter materials, visual aids, and a Companion DVD, this book addresses topics such as the theoretical and practical background required for successful purchasing, as well as how buyers are now making use of the Internet for their purchasing needs.For professionals with a career or interest in retail buying, retail merchandising and/or fashion merchandising. ... Read more

Book Description

"The Supply Management Process" centers on the fundamentals of the purchasing and supply field. This text reviews the critical elements of the requisition process, cost analysis and management, sourcing and supplier evaluation, the competitive bidding process, legal issues, and sample contract terms and conditions. Each chapter concludes with a summary of key points as well as review questions. This volume is a must for those seeking knowledge of the building blocks of the supply management process. ... Read more

Book Description

"The Supply Management Environment" focuses on the strategic importance of purchasing and the effect today's rapidly changing environment has on the profession. The impact of globalization and time compression, e-business, and resource planning systems are the trends transforming purchasing strategy. This text is a vital resource for supply management professionals at every level, and addresses some of today's most critical issues. ... Read more

Book Description

A proven,innovative approach to meeting customer demand

Combining an intensive focus on customer/marketplace demands with innovative technology tools developed to execute demand chain planning, Managing the Demand-Supply Chain sets forth a powerful new model for fulfilling customer demand in the best possible way. Four of the world’s leading demand chain researchers and implementers demonstrate how select high-tech companies, such as Nokia and Dell, have used the demand chain approach to differentiate their value offerings and delight their customers.

The authors introduce three exciting new demand chain tools. "Demand breakpoint" identifies the point where value is significantly changed by operations; "value offering point" or VOP is the catalyst to demand chain activity; and "microcosms" executes demand chain strategies. The authors show managers how to use these tools to implement technology solutions that drive top performance.

Special features of Managing the Demand-Supply Chain include:

• The best thinking from acknowledged leaders in the field

• An extended case study of Nokia’s successful demand chain management implementation

• Numerous sidebars detailing real-world implementation issues

Managing the Demand-Supply Chain is an indispensable resource for managers who want to optimize operational effectiveness, spur innovation, and achieve and sustain excellence in exceeding customer expectations. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fantastic Book on Demand-Chain and Market-Based Operations
I had the pleasure of discovering "Managing the Demand-Supply Chain" at a book store in Seoul, Korea. What luck!!! The authors provide a wealth of knowledge that is immediately implementable. When so many business books merely serve as "sales pieces" for their consultant-authors, it is sometimes surprising to find one that is actually actionable. I highly recommed this book to anyone interested in market-based management and value-chain management. [One note of caution: This book is ALL business. In otherwords, it can take a little "work" to read through a small number of dry and technically written sections. However, I think you'll agree with me when I say that it is more than worth the effort.] Two thumbs way up!! ... Read more